​(RNS) The recent emergence of murderous anti-Semitism in “enlightened” Europe, and even the public refusal of a defeated Egyptian judo athlete at the Rio Olympics to shake the hand of his victorious Israeli opponent — a seemingly minor act — set me thinking about how two remarkable leaders in the struggle against anti-Semitism would react to such news.

The answer is easy. They would not be shocked.

Nor would Edward Flannery (1912-1998), an American Roman Catholic priest, and Jules Isaac (1887-1963), a French Jewish historian, be surprised about the constant barrage of religious, political, economic, and cultural hatred fired at Israel, the world’s only Jewish state.